Election Day Election week in the United States is now often considered, as each state follows its own rules and practices for counting ballots – not to mention legal challenges – that can delay results. But the truth is that no one knows how long it will take this time for the winner to be announced.

In 2020, the Associated Press declared President Joe Biden emerged victorious Saturday afternoon, four days after the polls closed. Even then, the AP called North Carolina for Donald Trump 10 days after Election Day and Georgia for Biden 16 days later after a hand recount.

Four years earlier, the 2016 election was decided just hours after most polling stations closed. The AP declared Trump the winner on election night at 2:29 a.m. (it was technically Wednesday morning on the East Coast).

This time, both campaigns believe the race is extremely close between the seven key states that should decide the election, barring any major surprises: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The size of the card and the narrowness of the race make it difficult to predict when a winner might be declared.

Where can I find the first signs?

Look at what’s happening in two key East Coast states, North Carolina and Georgia, where results could come relatively quickly. That doesn’t mean we’ll get the final results in these states quickly if the returns are close, but these are the early swing states that could give a sense of the kind of night we’re heading into.

To dig deeper, look at urban and suburban areas in the industrial North and Southeast, where Democrats have made gains since 2020.

In North Carolina, Kamala Harris’ margins in Wake and Mecklenburg counties, home to the state capital, Raleigh, and the state’s largest city, Charlotte, respectively, will reveal just how much Trump will have to oust the least populated rural areas available to it. dominated.

In Pennsylvania, Harris needs strong turnout in blue Philadelphia, but she also seeks to solidify Democrats’ advantage in the arc of suburban counties to the north and west of the city. She campaigned aggressively in Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties, where Biden improved on Clinton’s margins of victory in 2016. The Philadelphia metro area, including the four pass counties, accounts for 43 percent of the voice from Pennsylvania.

Elsewhere in the Blue Wall, Trump must curb Democratic growth in Michigan’s key suburban counties outside Detroit, particularly in Oakland County. He faces the same challenge in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, outside Milwaukee.